Linux Install

[FI Fheonix]

So, I want to run Linux on my windows PC. anybody know the best/ easiest way to install it? Anything I should know beforehand?

[Needfuldoer]

I recommend you start with a VM inside VirtualBox, or a second PC you don't mind erasing.

[RollyShed]

1 hour ago, FI Fheonix said:

So, I want to run Linux on my windows PC.

Download an iso file. I recommend Linux Mint with Cinnamon desktop.

 

If you don't already have it, install Rufus on the Windows computer and "burn" (note - not copy) the iso file on to a USB stick.

 

Boot the computer from the stick, probably telling the BIOS to look at USB first. you can run the Linux and see how it behaves.

Personally I'd suggest / recommend you fit an SSD into the computer and install on to that, best with the Windows disk disconnected so you can't make a mistake.

 

After trying Linux that way, why reconnect the Windows disk? OK, maybe to copy files across to the Linux disk.

[BasicWombat]

Use a Virtual Machine (i.e. VirtualBox) if you have enough hardware resources or try with a Live Boot Image on your device before installing.

 

Linux is a far different beast to that of Windows and does take time to learn.
So before installing or dual booting, testing it in a non-destructive scenario will help you gauge if this is the solution for you.

It also allows you to easily try the various distributions before hand as well to find one that you like.

 

Start with Ubuntu as it's the most popular and you will find a large amount of guides.

 

NetworkChuck has a great intro to linux. 

Also there's the LTT video as well:

 

 

[The Hope]

Something many novices think is that Linux distributions are very similar. But there are definitely quality differences and technological differences between distributions. The hardest thing for a novice seems to me to know which distro best suits his preferences. I have extensive experience with hundreds of Unix-like systems and these are the systems I would recommend at the moment:

 

Easy systems for AMD/Intel/Nvidia users: Nobara Project, mageia, Mint, Rosa, Neptune, openKylin, siduction

Moderately difficult systems for AMD/Intel users: Devuan, Void Linux, Clear Linux, openSUSE, Alpine Linux
Moderately difficult systems for Nvidia users: Void Linux, Artix Linux, openSUSE

If you have intermediate skills and want to learn, you can also use FreeBSD. It's probably the best desktop system if you can use it.

If you care a lot about security (and have mediocre skills) then OpenBSD is perfect.

[10leej]

On 7/16/2023 at 4:54 AM, The Hope said:

Something many novices think is that Linux distributions are very similar. But there are definitely quality differences and technological differences between distributions. The hardest thing for a novice seems to me to know which distro best suits his preferences. I have extensive experience with hundreds of Unix-like systems and these are the systems I would recommend at the moment:

 

Easy systems for AMD/Intel/Nvidia users: Nobara Project, mageia, Mint, Rosa, Neptune, openKylin, siduction

Moderately difficult systems for AMD/Intel users: Devuan, Void Linux, Clear Linux, openSUSE, Alpine Linux
Moderately difficult systems for Nvidia users: Void Linux, Artix Linux, openSUSE

If you have intermediate skills and want to learn, you can also use FreeBSD. It's probably the best desktop system if you can use it.

If you care a lot about security (and have mediocre skills) then OpenBSD is perfect.

I notice a clear lack of Ubuntu and Fedora both of which are way more popular with more active communities and as a result have better "Google" power than the ones you listed (Well maybe besides Mint but thats always been a bit of a debate).

[The Hope]

On 7/23/2023 at 9:03 AM, 10leej said:

I notice a clear lack of Ubuntu and Fedora both of which are way more popular with more active communities and as a result have better "Google" power than the ones you listed (Well maybe besides Mint but thats always been a bit of a debate).

openSUSE has very good documentation. https://doc.opensuse.org/documentation/leap/reference/html/book-reference/index.html

siduction, Devuan and Neptune are Debian (for Debian I would say their documentation is lacking)

Rosa Fresh is a stable and easy to use distro http://wiki.rosalab.ru/en/index.php/Main_Page

openKylin is easy to use and I think the 'man' command should work

Void Linux is well documented https://docs.voidlinux.org/

mageia documentation https://www.mageia.org/en/doc/

Nobara Project is Fedora with user friendly tweaks https://docs.fedoraproject.org/en-US/docs/

Clear Linux https://clearlinux.github.io/clear-linux-documentation/index.html

Alpine Linux documentation https://docs.alpinelinux.org/user-handbook/0.1a/index.html

Artix Linux is a flavor of Arch Linux https://wiki.archlinux.org/

 

FreeBSD has very good documentation https://download.freebsd.org/doc/en/books/handbook/handbook_en.pdf

Tutorials from more than 10 years ago usually still work perfectly because the system only switches to new technology when it is a real added value.

You also have the forums where you can go, and the man pages are also excellent.

 

OpenBSD is always praised for its excellent documentation but does not always have much Google power. 
Which I think proves that quality and up-to-date man pages are most important.

[PCGamer2727]

4 hours ago, The Hope said:

openSUSE has very good documentation. https://doc.opensuse.org/documentation/leap/reference/html/book-reference/index.html

siduction, Devuan and Neptune are Debian (for Debian I would say their documentation is lacking)

Rosa Fresh is a stable and easy to use distro http://wiki.rosalab.ru/en/index.php/Main_Page

openKylin is easy to use and I think the 'man' command should work

Void Linux is well documented https://docs.voidlinux.org/

mageia documentation https://www.mageia.org/en/doc/

Nobara Project is Fedora with user friendly tweaks https://docs.fedoraproject.org/en-US/docs/

Clear Linux https://clearlinux.github.io/clear-linux-documentation/index.html

Alpine Linux documentation https://docs.alpinelinux.org/user-handbook/0.1a/index.html

Artix Linux is a flavor of Arch Linux https://wiki.archlinux.org/

 

FreeBSD has very good documentation https://download.freebsd.org/doc/en/books/handbook/handbook_en.pdf

Tutorials from more than 10 years ago usually still work perfectly because the system only switches to new technology when it is a real added value.

You also have the forums where you can go, and the man pages are also excellent.

 

OpenBSD is always praised for its excellent documentation but does not always have much Google power. 
Which I think proves that quality and up-to-date man pages are most important.

Most Linux documentation is not that useful to a beginner unless it is laid out in a tutorial format.

 

I spend time every day assisting people with Linux and my experience is that as a beginner, people often lack the vocabulary to read most Linux documentation and make any kind of sense of it.  What most beginners want is "I want to do a thing, how do I it?".

 

For distros like Debian, Ubuntu and all those based on them it is easy to find answers to most common questions even with no real understanding of what you are doing.  Also, most of the distros based on those two provide a wealth of GUI tools to help you achieve common tasks without having to understand them.

 

Most of the distros you mention above would not be easy for most beginners.

 

In reading your list targeting beginners, I think some are better than others for that specific audience.

• Nobara - This one is not a bad choice for a beginner.  The Fedora documentation is horrific though.  Luckily, there are usually helpful tutorials to be found for Fedora.
• Mageia - This is a tough one for me.  Mageia is easy to install and use.  It provides helpful tools too.  However, tutorials or general help for Mageia are almost non-existent.  Other than the forums, your best bet is try to follow a Fedora tutorial and hope it works.  If you just want a desktop for basic tasks it will probably work great but if you want to use it for other things you may struggle to find the software and help you need.
• Mint - IMO, good for beginners. Based on Ubuntu, easy to use out of the box.  Plenty of docs and help available.
• Rosa - It is an interesting distro, but it is a not a great choice for most beginners.  There is minimal available information and most of it is written in Russian.  It is also doesn't have a lot that sets it apart to make it worth recommending for most beginners.  At least it isn't using apt-rpm anymore...
• Neptune - Last time I tried Neptune it was just Debian with a simple installer and a preset list of software.  That being said, I suppose that would be fine for a beginner.  It is definitely a niche choice though.
• openKylin - I haven't tried it in a bit.  Last time I tested it, it was not fully polished yet.  It is also mostly targeting a Chinese speaking audience.  I need to put it on my list to test again.
• siduction - IMO, this is better for an intermediate level user.  Being based on sid, there are things that popup when running it long-term that need to be addressed.

 

For myself, I almost always recommend Mint or PopOS to the total beginners unless I know something about them that leads me to a different answer.  Those two distros are easy to use, have lots of documentation and help available and support a really wide range of use cases from casual use to gaming.  Also, it takes much less of my time to support people on those distros.  They tend to be more self-sufficient.

 

If I was to consider ease of use and no other factors, I think Solus and EndlessOS are the easiest.  However, those distros don't support the wide variety of use cases that many other distros do.

[Xiee]

Missing a few from the suggestions that I've seen above.

 

Pop_OS - This is especially good for Nvidia users as it comes with an installer for those with Nvidia GPUs and it's easy to find apps in their store. And the dedicated community that they have provides a lot of help as well. I started with this distro when I was a beginner in Linux and I can't stress enough how it's helped me transition from completely ditching Windows.

EndeavourOS - It's basically ArchLinux without the headache. It has a nice friendly and has a helpful community that most "Arch" communities lack. You'll still need to use the Terminal often though. This is currently what I'm using.

 

[The Hope]

Quote

Mageia - This is a tough one for me.  Mageia is easy to install and use.  It provides helpful tools too.  However, tutorials or general help for Mageia are almost non-existent.  Other than the forums, your best bet is try to follow a Fedora tutorial and hope it works.  If you just want a desktop for basic tasks it will probably work great but if you want to use it for other things you may struggle to find the software and help you need.

It is more user-friendly than Fedora. It has a better control panel for beginners where you can install the Nvidia driver e.g. with a few clicks. With Fedora, installing Nvidia drivers is already less easy. It is also more stable than Fedora and less likely to have problems after an update. It is perhaps the most user-friendly distro along with Mint.

 

Quote

Rosa - It is an interesting distro, but it is a not a great choice for most beginners.  There is minimal available information and most of it is written in Russian.  It is also doesn't have a lot that sets it apart to make it worth recommending for most beginners.  At least it isn't using apt-rpm anymore...

Rosa 12 looks pretty, is very easy to use, has a huge community with many active members and the developers are active there too- everyone is helpful and friendly.

It also distinguishes itself from 80% of distros by faster boot times, and better stability than most distros.

 

Quote

siduction - IMO, this is better for an intermediate level user.  Being based on sid, there are things that popup when running it long-term that need to be addressed.

There are people who start with Arch Linux and find this easy enough to get started with Linux. siduction is a lot easier to install than Arch Linux and Debian.

It is also not certain that you are ever going to have a problem, many siduction users say they have never had a problem.

[FI Fheonix]

On 7/11/2023 at 6:46 PM, Needfuldoer said:

I recommend you start with a VM inside VirtualBox, or a second PC you don't mind erasing.

So, I am on the Virtual Box.org

website and I downloaded the file for windows hosts. I try to install it and i am met with this message. What should I do next?

[FI Fheonix]

On 7/11/2023 at 6:46 PM, Needfuldoer said:

I recommend you start with a VM inside VirtualBox, or a second PC you don't mind erasing.

 

On 8/14/2023 at 4:59 PM, FI Fheonix said:

So, I am on the Virtual Box.org

website and I downloaded the file for windows hosts. I try to install it and i am met with this message. What should I do next?

.